When commenting on the tragic
events of September 11, 2001, many on the left have one thing
to say. That one thing is "Bush knew"!

If you listen to the likes
of Michael Moore (no relation, thank God) and Cynthia McKinney,
one would be led to believe that President George W. Bush was
in cahoots with Osama Bin Laden and had full knowledge of dates,
times and other logistics of what would happen on that morning.
While I can't believe that he did not know they would fly planes
into those buildings, there are things that he and the administration
did know.

President Bush knew that Iraq
was a safe haven for terrorists. Vice President Dick Cheney
publicly provided information that Abdul Rahman Yasin was in
Iraq and receiving money and shelter from Saddam Hussein. This
is the same Abdul Rahmn Yasin who mixed the chemicals used in
the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center.

Bush knew that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
was also in Iraq. This is the same Abu Musab al-Zarqawi who
ran terrorist training camps in Afghanistan, and then fled to
Iraq after we invaded. He is still masterminding terror attacks
in Iraq to this day.

Bush knew (which apparently
the media did not, even though they've reported it) that Hussein
continued to order his military to shoot at our fighter planes
while they were patrolling the "No Fly Zone."

Bush knew that Hussein was
paying the families of Palestinian suicide bombers that often
target Israeli civilians. He was paying up to $25,000 for them
to blow up restaurants and shopping malls.

Bush knew through Russian President
Vladimir Putin and Russian intelligence that Hussein was planning
terrorist attacks on U.S. and U.S. interests.

We now know, despite the minimal
amount of mainstream media coverage, that the United Nations
inspectors say Saddam Hussein also probably shipped out the WMDs
before and after the war. Perhaps they went to neighboring Syria
- another country supporting terrorism.

After 9/11, Bush said "We
will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed
these acts, and those who harbor them." While many on the
political left try to find something from President Bush that
implicates Saddam directly in 9/11, that quote summarizes the
President's position. Iraq, at the minimum, harbored and sponsored
terrorism.

To those who make the claims
that "Bush knew," they don't realize how correct they
are.

###

Geoffrey Moore is a member
of the National Advisory Council of the African-American leadership
network Project 21, and an MBA student and marketing analyst
in the Chicago area. Comments may be sent to [email protected].

Published by The National Center for Public Policy Research.
Reprints permitted provided source is credited. New Visions Commentaries
reflect the views of their author, and not necessarily those
of Project 21.